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More InfoLatest News Around the Web
Biden Administration Releases Proposal To Reduce Nicotine Levels In Cigarettes
The Washington Post (1/15, Roubein , Ovalle ) reports, “The Biden administration released a proposal Wednesday to dramatically reduce nicotine levels in cigarettes, a move that anti-smoking advocates believe would save millions of lives even as it threatens the powerful tobacco industry.” Under the proposal, “tobacco companies would be required to cut nicotine in cigarettes to no more than 0.7 milligrams per gram of tobacco, which the FDA says is significantly lower than the average concentration in products on the market.” The FDA’s “proposal would also apply to most cigars and pipe tobacco, but not to e-cigarettes or nicotine pouches.”
The New York Times (1/15, Jewett ) reports, “The FDA’s proposal includes projections that by 2100, the nicotine reduction measure would prevent an estimated 48 million young people from starting to smoke.” By 2060, the FDA “also estimates that 1.8 million tobacco-related deaths would be prevented, and that $30 trillion in benefits would accrue over 40 years, mostly from the generation that would not begin smoking.”
NBC News (1/15, Edwards ) reports, “If finalized, the change would mean that cigarettes would lose their ability to hook most people into addiction.”
Related Links:
— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)
Genetic Variants In OUD Risk Algorithm Do Not Meet Reasonable Standards In Identifying OUD Risk, Study Suggests
HCPlive (1/14, Derman) reports, “A recent study suggested that the genetic variants in the opioid use disorder (OUD) risk algorithm do not meet reasonable standards in identifying OUD risk.” The researchers said, “We found no evidence to support the clinical utility of the 15 [single nucleotide variants] purported to predict OUD risk.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.
Related Links:
— “Genetic Variants in OUD Risk Algorithm Do Not Meet Standards in Identifying Risk,”Chelsie Derman, HCPlive, January 14, 2025
Construction Industry Aims To Address Workers’ Mental Health Amid High Suicide Rates
KFF Health News (1/14, Ridderbusch ) reports, “Over 5,000 male construction workers die from suicide annually – five times the number who die from work-related injuries, according to several studies.” That is “considerably more than the suicide rate for men in the general population.” BL Harbert International, a construction company, “has added mental health first-aid training for on-site supervisors and distributed information about suicide prevention to laborers in the field.” According to KFF Health News, “the efforts are part of a larger push led by the industry and supported by unions, research institutions, and federal agencies to address construction workers’ mental health.” However, “initiatives to combat this mental health crisis are tougher to implement than protocols for hard hats, safety vests, and protective goggles.” Additionally, “some of the potential solutions, such as paid sick leave, have drawn pushback from the industry as it eyes costs.”
Related Links:
— “Beyond Hard Hats: Mental Struggles Become the Deadliest Construction Industry Danger,”Katja Ridderbusch, KFF Health News, January 14, 2025
New Cases Of Dementia Will Double By 2060, Study Suggests
The Washington Post (1/13, Johnson) reports, “New cases of dementia will double by 2060, when 1 million U.S. adults are projected to develop the memory-robbing condition each year, according to a sobering new study published Monday.” The “analysis shows that the risk a person faces over their lifetime is higher than some previous estimates: After age 55, 4 in 10 adults are likely to develop some form of dementia.” That is “in part because the new analysis is based on decades of close follow-up, including regular cognitive assessments, of a racially diverse group of people – a quarter of whom were Black and face an increased risk of dementia.” The findings were published in Nature Medicine.
The New York Times (1/13, Belluck ) reports the study estimates that “the number of new cases per year among Black Americans will triple” by 2060. The rise in cases “will primarily be due to the growing aging population, as many Americans are living longer than previous generations.” The study also “found that the vast majority of dementia risk occurred after age 75, increasing further as people reached age 95.”
NBC News (1/13, Sullivan, Herzberg ) reports, “Older studies estimated that about 14% of men and 23% of women would develop dementia in their lifetimes.” However, “the new study puts that estimate higher, at around 42% for both men and women.”
The AP (1/13, Neergaard ) reports “there are steps people can take to reduce” their risk of developing dementia, “such as controlling high blood pressure and other bad-for-the-brain health problems. And it’s not too late to try even in middle age.”
Related Links:
— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)
Research Points To Mental Health Benefits Among Older Adults Who Volunteer
HealthDay (1/10, Thompson ) reported that according to research published in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society, volunteering in their community can “help seniors avoid depression related to social isolation. Volunteering reduces the risk of depression by 43% among seniors.” The article quoted senior researcher Guohua Li, MD, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia University, saying, “Those engaged in volunteering activities had a significantly lower prevalence of depression.”
HCP Live (1/10, Derman) reported the study also found that “the point prevalence of depression in a multisite sample of community-dwelli ng older adults aged 65-79 years was 6.2%.”
Related Links:
— “Avoiding Isolation By Volunteering Offers Mental Health Benefits to Seniors,”Dennis Thompson, , January 10, 2025
Foundation News
Foundation Chosen as Community Partner by Maryland Aviation Administration
The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry was selected by the Maryland Aviation Administration Community Partners Program to display a poster in the terminal at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport. It can be found on Concourse C, between Gates C-4 and C-6, on the secure side for the next six months.
New Radio Ad Examines Suicidal Risk in Children
About a third of children who show up in emergency rooms have risk factors for suicide. A new public service ad by the Foundation examines how critical it is to screen adolescents and lists warning signs. Getting professional help is important for the health of the child.
Suicidal Risk in ChildrenSuicidal Risk in Children, MP3, 2.5MB
You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website’s homepage. All past public service spots are also available for listening or to download on our Radio Advertisements page.
Save the date for This is My Brave 2019!
Join us on Saturday, April 6, 2019 at 4 PM in the Notre Dame of Maryland University’s LeClerc Auditorium for a live presentation of essays, original music, comedy and poetry performed by individuals living with―or loving someone with―a mental health condition. Visit https://thisismybrave.org/event/this-is-my-brave-the-show-baltimore/ for more info.
New Radio Ad Examines Affects of Shootings on Communities
Gun violence affects an entire community’s mental health. A new public service ad by the Foundation explores how shootings traumatize the victim, the witnesses, and family members. Having someone to talk to, particularly a psychiatrist, can help cope.
Shootings and CommunitiesShootings and Communities, MP3, 2.5MB
You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website’s homepage. All past public service spots are also available for listening or to download on our Radio Advertisements page.
Cooper to Receive Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award
Damion Cooper, Th.M. will be awarded the 2019 Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry (MFP) Anti-Stigma Advocacy Prize for his op-ed, “Surviving a gunshot, one man’s story” in the October 18, 2018 Baltimore Sun. The MFP Board unanimously felt that his article was the most deserving of this year’s recognition. Being shot is unfortunately a somewhat common experience for some residents of Baltimore, and the culture of not talking about it makes recovery very difficult for survivors. The Board believes that his courage may empower others to seek help and speak more openly about their own or their family’s suffering.
The Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award carries a $500 prize, which will be formally presented at the Maryland Psychiatric Society annual meeting on April 25.
The Foundation established this annual prize for a worthy piece published in a major newspaper (preferably local or regional) that accomplishes one or more of the following:
- Shares with the public their experience with mental illness in themselves, a family member, or simply in the community.
- Helps others to overcome their inability to talk about mental illness or their own mental illness.
- Imparts particularly insightful observations on the general subject of mental illness.
Related Links:
— “Surviving a gunshot, one man’s story,” Damion J. Cooper, Baltimore Sun, October 18, 2018